Health—Aged care
394. Ms Emily Hamiltonto theMinister for Aged Care and Seniors:
I refer to the Cook Labor government's commitment to ensuring all Western Australians can access the health care we need when we need it.
(1) Can the minister outline to the house how we are stepping up when it comes to aged care?
(2) Can the minister advise how we are helping older Western Australians get the support they need to make important decisions about their care as they age?
Ms Simone McGurk replied:
(1)–(2) I thank the member for Joondalup for her question and also her advocacy on behalf of older Western Australians, particularly in her electorate. Let us be clear that our government's top priority is to ensure that all Western Australians have access to the health care and the aged-care support they need when they need it. That is why the Cook Labor government is stepping up to ensure that as a state, we get our share of a stronger, fairer and more person-centred aged-care system. I was very pleased to join the Premier and the Minister for Health to advocate to the federal government the week before last. We secured a commitment from the Minister for Aged Care and Seniors, Minister Sam Rae, to visit Western Australia following the current parliamentary sitting period. I look forward to continuing those conversations with the federal government, particularly through Minister Rae when he joins us here in Perth. Following our visit, we were pleased that the federal government brought forward 20,000 home care packages—
Mr Basil Zempilas interjected.
The Speaker: Leader of the Opposition.
Ms Simone McGurk: —from its previously deferred system. We are pleased because that was one of the items that we had been advocating for very firmly. We need home care packages. A round of home care packages that were to be delivered on 1 July had been deferred. That has been talked about quite a bit. We are pleased 20,000 of those packages have now been brought forward. We do not know how many of those packages will be delivered here in Western Australia, so we continue to make those points to the federal government. That is why we have a dedicated Minister for Aged Care and Seniors in Western Australia, not because we want to take the responsibility for aged-care funding or regulation from the federal government. We certainly do not want to do that. We want to make sure that our older Western Australians are looked after. We want to make sure that they have a responsive system and the sort of care that they need when they need it. If that includes advocating to the federal government, that is exactly what we will do.
We are doing more than that. We are stepping into providing more assistance than any other state government has done before in the aged-care space. We have announced a $100 million low interest loan scheme that will expand aged-care infrastructure to deliver more beds in Western Australia. We have been clear, and I have said before in this Parliament, that that might include bringing online beds in aged-care facilities that are not currently being utilised, whether it means refurbishing existing facilities or building new facilities. We want to target concession beds. We want to target those cohorts that we know are under-represented in our aged-care system at the moment. That is in addition to our $9.9 million nation-leading initiative Time to Think, which is giving aged-care patients and their families, as the name indicates, an opportunity to get the care support they need while they figure out the next stage in their care journey, whether that is home care, going home with the right sort of support or a residential aged-care facility.
After we visited Canberra, the next morning I joined the Premier and the Minister for Health again at the Hall & Prior facility in High Wycombe. Previously a disability facility, it has been repurposed to become a brand-new facility for aged care and, in this case, four Time to Think beds. We met Margaret, who was at that stage I think the first patient and was getting a lot of attention in the Hall & Prior facility. It was great to talk to her about the sort of assistance she had been given. She was really grateful for being able to come out of hospital and, as I said, get that sort of care at a beautiful and relatively new facility. It was looking fantastic. I thank the Hall & Prior facility leadership and also its staff who hosted us there that morning. I should say that that marked the 100th patient in our Time to Think program, which is fantastic. That is actual people. That is hours and hours of hospital bed time that has been freed up as a result of our Time to Think program.
We are putting $2.2 million into our respite program, which has supported 700 long-stay hospital patients since May 2023. This is about dignity, independence and choice. We also have our culturally lead Transition Care Program in partnership with Aboriginal community–controlled health services to support older Aboriginal people leave hospital sooner in culturally appropriate care. I know that is really important. I know that from my own electorate where Aboriginal people need to feel comfortable with the institution into which they are going. We also have a seamless system of hospital discharge through Co-HIVE and the WA virtual emergency department for remote monitoring and home-based care to ensure older Western Australians receive, again, the right care in the right place at the right time.
I would like to again thank the federal government for its engagement so far. Until we secure at least, as a minimum, the proportion of home care packages or residential aged care to the number of older Western Australians, we will not stop. We have just over 10% of older Western Australians over 65 in our state; that is the minimum of what we expect in our home-care system.
Several members interjected.
Ms Simone McGurk: It is interesting when we are speaking in the chamber—I am not sure that Hansard can really capture it—we get from the other side just this low murmur of commentary that is not really saying anything. It is just these little words and interjections. They do not have a plan. I am not aware that they took any sort of seniors or aged-care policy to the last election—
Mr Basil Zempilas interjected.
The Speaker: Members of the opposition!
Ms Simone McGurk: I am not aware if they did. I have tried to find it but I could not find it. If there is one, I am interested to know what exactly they took to the last election when it comes to the aged-care system or looking after our seniors. As the Deputy Premier said, the Leader of the Opposition has been a commentator for some time, and not a particularly good one. That is demonstrated here in this Parliament. It is easy to commentate. It is easy to throw in a little—
Mr Basil Zempilas interjected.
Ms Simone McGurk: It is easy to throw in a one-liner, but what are their solutions? It is easy to throw in commentary and single-line observations, but exactly what is their solution? Nothing. We get nothing from them, except from the cheap seats.
Mr Basil Zempilas interjected.
The Speaker: Leader of the Opposition!
Ms Simone McGurk: As I said before, we are delivering more than any other state government when it comes to aged care. For the first time, we have a minister who is responsible to advocate to the federal government, and that is exactly what we will do.
